Housing unit



Dec. 25, 1945. H. o. CHAPMAN ETAL HOUSING UNIT Filed April 26, 1945 UNITED sTATEs PATENT oFElcE HOUSING UNIT Henry Otis Chapman, Cedarhurst, and Randolph Evans, Bronxville, N. Y.

Application April 26, 1943, Serial No. 484,552

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to building structures and embodies, more speciilcally, an Aiinproved structural unit adapted for use as an integral part of a building such as a small home,

The common practice in the building industry has been to construct a house on the jo by assembling and building the various component parts on the site. This requires a high degree of individual skill on the part of many types of artisans and, likewise, a convenient source of raw materials of many types and of a great variety of equipment such, for example, as kitchen and bathroom accessories. This method of building has always caused the cost thereof to be high, and it is generally recognized that. as a result of the high cost of building, relatively few homes have been built and the standard of housing is comparatively loW. f

In order to overcome the disadvantages above mentioned, it has heretofore been suggested to prefabricate certain sections of the ybuilding such, for example,` as the walls and ceilings, but this has not overcome the principal objection above mentioned, inasmuch as the general structure of a house is one which usually follows the environmental or geographical type of design for houses in the locality where the house is to be built and the artisans in that locali-ty have the necessary materials conveniently at hand and are skillful at constructing the particular design selected. The chief diiiiculty and expense lie in 4 the plumbing and other mechanical equipment that must .be incorporated into the building structure, and it is in this respect that the present invention is of unique importance.

An object of the invention, accordingly, is to provide a building unit in which the dominant or principal portion of the plumbing and other mechanical equipment is embodied in a unitary structure.

A further object of the invention is to provide an integral building unit in which the kitchen and bathroom facilities are formed as a unitary structure and adapted .to be conveniently related to the remaining portion of the house of which itis to form a component part.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a building unit of the above character wherein the elements of the kitchen and bathroom are so designed and integrated as to reduce the total height of the building unit to a minimum and enable the elements thereof to be conveniently related to a single floor of a building structure 'with which the unit is to be associated.

tion of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows:

Fig. 4 is a view in section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. l and looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged partial view of the wall structure adjacent the lavatory shown in Fig. 2. Referring to the above drawing, the building 2o unit will be seen to consist of a bottom I0 Vand a top Il. Side walls I2, I3, I4, and I5 are shown as of equal length, thus making the unit square in cross-section although, if desired, the `uniti-'l may have other geometrical proportions.

The side waus I2, I3, I4, and l5 are preferably formed of metal which may 'be stamped and secured as by welding or other convenient securing means in order to afford .the desiredari- Agdity and housing facilities hereinafter men-.-

tOnSd. 1 The walls I2, I3, I4, and I5 are alsoformed with inner and outer sides -between which suitable iii-'- sulating material is placed and, in order to provide for the necessary plumbing facilities, a soil pipe I6 is provided in one corner of the vunit to -take advantage of the space there afforded between the inner and outer wall plates.

In the unit illustrated, it will be seen that there is included a cellar or basement portion 40 shown in Fig. 4, access to which is had by means of stairs I1 and including a space I8 into which suitable air conditioning or other heating equipment may be installed, a furnace I9, a recess 20 for laundry tubs, and a space 2l for a washing machine. The stairs II communicate with the adjacent basement portion of the building by means of which access is had to the related elements just described.

The kitchen section of the unit is illustrated 5g in Fig. 3 and includes a iloor 22 giving access to the stairs I'I and also to a staircase 23 by means of which convenient access may be had to the adjacent floor 24 of the remaining portion of the building. An exterior doorway 25 provided Further objects of the invention :will appear with a door 2B gives access to the exterior o! the unit and building. the unit being designed so that the doorway and its door sill are not below the ground level.

Immediately above the furnace I9 a stove or range 21 is provided in the kitchen, a hot water tank 28 being provided in the corner cf the unit and conveniently associated with the range and boiler or furnace I9. A vertical ue 29 is formed in the side wall I5 for the furnace I9 and a duct 30 in the wall I2 for use in connection with the ventilation of the kitchen.

Also provided in the kitchen is a sink 3l beneath which a cupboard 32 is situated and above which an additional cupboard 34 is formed. Above the stove 2l a deep shelf 35 is provided, the shelf being accessible from the adjacent building structure through an aperture 36. In this fashion, food and equipment may be placed upon the shelf 35 and removed therefrom through the opening 36 by a person standing on the floor 24.

The kitchen is also provided with a refrigerator 31, the cooling unit of which may be housed within a cabinet 36, an upper compartment 39 being provided and access to which may be had through a door 40. lustrated at 4I and the cooling unit door at 42.

The wall I2 is also formed with a recess 43 having shelves 44, access to which is had from outside the unit and by persons on the floor 24.

The ceiling of the kitchen, which also forms the floor of the bathroom, is shown at 45, the bathroom being illustrated in the sectional view The refrigerator door is ilof Fig. 2 and being accessible from the floor 24 by means of a staircase 46. A bath tub 41 is provided between the walls I2 and I5, a towel cabinet being formed at 48 and more remotely in the corner. A lavatory 49 is provided adjacent the bath tub and is formed with a base wall 50 which is located above the doorway 25 and thus provides clearance to permit the door 26 to swing inwardly. The space beneath the lavatory 49 thus provides head room for the stairway. This is necessary in view of the position of the sill of the door 25 with respect to the kitchen door 22.

Side walls 5I and rear walls 52 are stamped with curved surfaces to provide recesses 53 within which electric lights 54 are received. A medicine chest 55 is provided in the rear walls 52 and a compartment 56 is provided within which ventilating equipment may be installed.

The toilet is provided at 5l and is connected to the soil line I6 in the usual fashion.

The usual plumbing facilities, such as faucets, pipes, waste lines, shower head, etc., are provided for the equipment previously mentioned and a window 51' is provided in the bathroom in the wall I3.

It is also proposed to provide a switch and fuse box 56 in the basement of the building unit, this box having electrical connections with outlets 59 suitably located in the walls I2 and I4, by means of which electrical connections may be had with the adjacent portions of the building of which the building unit forms an integral part. Moreover, heat andv air conditioning ducts ll may be provided in the unit to facilitate the heating of the unit and adjacent structure.

While the invention has been described with specic reference to the building unit illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is not to be limited save as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A structural unit for installation in a building comprising a top, a bottom, a plurality of side walls, a floor between the top and the bottom. forming two rooms within the sides. one superimposed over the other, said floor being cut away adjacent one side wall to provide head room, a lavatory in the upper room overlying the cutaway portion of the floor, a wall section between the lavatory and said floor to conceal the cutaway portion, a staircase in the lower room beneath the cutaway portion and a doorway and door in the said one side wall between the lower room and the exterior of the unit and having their lower edges disposed at a level between the floors of said rooms.

2. A prefabricated, transportable building unit, adapted to be incorporated into a building having a basement including a floor, a rst floor, and a ceiling spaced from said flrst floor; comprising a bottom, a top and a plurality of side wa1ls,trans verse floors extending between said side walls providing a basement space of less height than the spacing between the basement oor and said rst floor, and vertically superposed spaces for a kitchen and a bathroom, of substantially equal height, the overall height of said unit not greatly exceeding the distance between said basement floor and said ceiling whereby said first ilooris disposed between said transverse oors. stairways wholly within said unit opening through the side walls of said spaces and terminating in alignment with said rst iloor of said building and with the floors of said respective spaces, and another stairway in said unit extending through said basement space and communicating with said kitchen space and said basement through openings in the transverse floor of said kitchen space and a side wall, respectively.

HENRY OTIS CHAPMAN. RANDOLPH EVANS. 

